Archive for January 2014

I’m down in Captiva Island Florida. As a member of the Executive Board for the Association of Great Lakes Outdoor Writers, we were fortuate enough to enjoy the warm weather and fishing that this Captiva – Sanibel area has to offer while we are here for our winter board meeting. There are many marinas on... Read more »

I’ve fished Lake Michigan many times for perch. Actually, my very first Illinois Outdoors TV show was taped on perch fishing in the Big Drink 18 years ago. When the perch fishing is on, I would be among hundreds of perchers fishing off 95th Street in Illinois or Indiana waters. I was going to post... Read more »

The Flats off Captiva Island Fishing Report by Don Dziedzina Right now I’m on Captiva Island, outside of Ft. Myers Florida. Beautiful weather, great food and just a fun destination to be at when Chicago is struggling to dig out of the snow and keep warm. I went fishing today with Jim DaRosa, my Fishing... Read more »

Yesterday Jim DaRosa and I arrived at Captiva Island in Florida. It’s located just outside of Ft. Myers. Our brides joined us for this trip that was planned with some good, no, great timing. We’re missing the Chicago snow with some fantastic weather. It hit 78 degrees today while Chicago struggled with snow, wind, and... Read more »

There’s no doubt that the fishing industry is one of the largest in the country. Here are some interesting facts from the Americal Sportfishing Association. There are approximately 60 million anglers in the U.S. of which 46 million are estimated to fish in a given year. One of every four anglers fishes in saltwater. No... Read more »

I have my credentials. The Shooting, Hunting Outdoor Trade Show AKA the SHOT Show opened today. It’s the largest gun show in the world. It’s so big, that in the four day’s that it’s open, no one can wall all the aisles and see all the guns, ammo, hunting gear, camo clothing and tactical gear... Read more »

Reduced deer harvest reports throughout the Midwest have sent a shockwave of concern through the deer hunting community. With our firearm harvest down roughly 20,000 from last year, Illinois is not alone. Our neighboring states are also reporting decreased harvest totals. Missouri hunters took 157,273 deer — down 23% from last year. Wisconsin hunters took... Read more »

In about a month, I’ll be heading north to Boulder Junction Wisconsin. For the second time, I’ll be attending their winter fest known as Frozen Tozen. Last year was my first time to enjoy all of the outdoor activities and since, I’ve been long waiting for it to happen again. The 6th Annual Boulder Junction... Read more »

The 2014 Pheasant Fest to be held in Milwaukee February 14 to 16 and arrangements have been made where the drive up is easier than you think. On February 15th Friends of Des Plaines State Fish and Wildlife Area will be sponsoring bus trips to and from the Fest leaving from three locations. For $50... Read more »

Meet The Blogger

Don Dziedzina

Don Dziedzina of Illinois Outdoors Inc., has been involved in the outdoors industry for over 40 years.
Don has written columns for numerous outdoor magazines and many local newspapers. For a couple years he wrote outdoor columns for the Chicago Tribune in the Sports section. Today, his columns are published in MidWest Outdoors and Adventure Sports Outdoors Magazines. He also produces outdoor news columns here in ChicagoNow, a blog owned by the Chicago Tribune.
Over 19 years ago Don began producing and hosting the Illinois Outdoors TV show. It airs now on Comcast, Insight, and MediaCom Cable having a reach of nearly 7 million viewers.
About 9 years ago he was asked by Jim DaRosa to join the staff of the Fishing and Outdoor Radio Show as co-host. Since then Jim and Don host the show that airs every week, simulcast on WCSJ AM 1550, WCSJ FM 103.1, WSPY FM 107.1, WSPY AM 1480, WSQR FM 93.5 and WSQR AM 1180.
On the Illinois Outdoors TV Show, Don always says, “Great Fishing (or hunting) is not that far away.” tm On the radio show they say “We fish, we hunt, we live the outdoors.” tm